Insider Selling: Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Director Sells 30,500 Shares of Stock

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) Director William Hoglund sold 30,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.19, for a total value of $2,171,295.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 252,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,975,475. This trade represents a 10.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Price Performance

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions stock remained flat at $67.31 during midday trading on Friday. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,343,393 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,947,955. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $89.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $87.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 4.06 and a quick ratio of 3.46. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 52 week low of $25.78 and a 52 week high of $134.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.61 billion, a PE ratio of 517.81 and a beta of 1.22.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The aerospace company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.04. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a return on equity of 3.34% and a net margin of 1.63%.The business had revenue of $345.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $327.51 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.13 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in KTOS. Amalgamated Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 57.7% in the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 73,673 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,732,000 after buying an additional 26,946 shares during the period. Mission Wealth Management LP purchased a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,828,000. Baillie Gifford & Co. purchased a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the third quarter valued at approximately $19,048,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $21,013,000. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 16.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 413,514 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $37,783,000 after acquiring an additional 57,906 shares during the period. 75.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KTOS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Noble Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $79.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $93.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Citizens Jmp raised their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $98.28.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Company Profile

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc (NASDAQ: KTOS) is a technology-driven company that specializes in national security and defense solutions for government and military customers. The firm’s core capabilities span unmanned systems, satellite communications, missile defense, cyber security, and directed-energy weapons. Through its integrated approach, Kratos delivers mission-critical products and services designed to enhance operational readiness and support force modernization initiatives.

In the unmanned systems arena, Kratos develops high-performance aerial platforms used as target drones, low-cost attritable aircraft and experimental stealth demonstrators.